Weaver's News Spin
June 1998
A review of events and their interpretation.
Tuesday, 30 June
US jets blow up an Iraqi radar station. US forces claim that the station had been scanning agressively at some RAF planes in the vicinity. Iraq just call it an act of naked agression. UN sanctions are due for renewal inside four weeks.
Penalties are the order of the day: Croatia advance to the last eight courtesy of a Suker punch just before half time, and Argentina and England swap spot kick scores in the first ten minutes of their game. A Michael Owen goal that brings to mind Diego Maradona's run against England twelve years ago gives England a 2-2 draw. Incompetent refereeing denies England a clear goal and a penalty in extra time, and Argentina wind up winning the resultant shoot out; winners on the field, but not in morals.
Jana Novotna, Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, Martina Hingis, and Venus Williams complete the Wimbledon quarter-final line up.
Recent champions Richard Krajicek, and Pete Sampras, former finalist Goran Ivanisevic, doughty fighters Mark Philipousis and Jan Siemerink, and Italian David Sanguinetti make the last eight in the men's contest. Sanguinetti is as surprised as anyone else at his success.
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Monday, 29 June
Tear gas is used at the Stephen Lawrence enquiry. The review into actions of London police in connection with a racist murder five years ago was due to hear from five men charged, but never tried, of his murder. Police used the CS spray after members of the Nation of Islam burst into the inquiry room claiming a cover-up continued.
The Drumcree March this Sunday will be re-routed. The march has been a cause celebre of Unionists marching down Nationalist streets for the past three years.
Tim Henman becomes the first man through to the last 8 at Wimbledon. He puts out US Open champion Pat Rafter in four sets. Elsewhere, Felix Mantilla falls to qualifier Stefan Grosjean, but there are 3rd round wins for Pete Sampras, Krajicek, Korda, Ivanisevic and Todd Martin.
The ladies' quarter final between Williams (V) and Williams (S) is off, after Sabrina pulls out with an injury. There are wins for Sanchez-Vicario, van Roost, Seles, Davenport, Novotna, Zvereva and Spirlea. Natalie Tauziat ends British interest, eliminating Sam Smith inside an hour.
Germany come from behind to beat Mexico 2-1.
The Netherlands leave it late to beat Yugoslavia 2-1, with an Edgar Davids strike. The Yugoslavs earlier missed a penalty to take the lead.
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Sunday, 28 June
Mo Mowlam says she will not barter prisoners for arms in her efforts to get the IRA to hand over its weapons. Two marches in Ulster are re-routed by the Parades Commission, and Martin McGuinness of Sinn Fein gives Toy Bair a list of action points relating to the Good Friday accord.
A Ferrari 1-2 at the French Grand Prix is the first since 1990. Michael Schumaccer leads Eddie Irvine home to cut the gap at the top of the drivers' championship to 6 points. Hakkinen finishes third, ahead of Villneuve, Wurz and Coulthard.
France book their place in the last 8 of the world cup by beating Paraguay on a Golden Goal. Their dull, low quality match ended 0-0 after normal time.
Denmark stuff Nigeria 4-1, taking a 2-0 lead after 11 minutes.
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Saturday, 27 June
Ulster Unionists take the most seats in the Northern Ireland assembly, just beating the SDLP into second place. Parties opposed to the agreement secure around 22 of the 108 seats.
Incredible scenes at Wimbledon, as British #1 Sam Smith ousts former champion Conchita Martinez in three sets. She's the first Brit to make the last 16 in ten years. Other winners include Martina Hingis, Monica Seles, Sanchez-Vicario and Natalie Tauziat.
British presence in the men's draw continues with Tim Henman beating Byron Black in four. Jonas Bjorkman falls to Jan Siemerink, and there are wins for Stoltenberg, Korda and Philipoussis. Rain closes play early.
The Second Phase of the World Cup kicks off with Italy beating Norway 1-0 in a tedious match. Brazil storm past Chile 4-1 without really breaking into a sweat. The two sides won't meet till the final.
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Friday, 26 June
Counting begins in the Ulster Assembly elections. Early results show the Catholic SDLP and anti-agreement DUP in the lead. Full results aren't expected until Sunday.
Sammy Sosa breaks the major league record for home runs in a month. Sosa hits his 19th homer of June in the seventh inning of the Chicago Cubs' game against the Detroit Tigers. Sosa broke the mark set by Detroit's Rudy York in August 1937.
Rain affects Wimbledon again, but Steffi Graf loses 4 & 5 to Natasha Zvereva. Lindsay Davenport wins, but Lori McNeil falls to Sandrine Testud.
In the mens, there are wins for Goran Ivanisevic and Pat Rafter.
Argentina beat Croatia 1-0 to seal top spot in group H. Jamaica finish third after beating Japan 2-1.
Romania draw 1-1 with Tunisia to secure top spot in group G. England beat Colombia 2-0 to finish second.
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Thursday, 25 June
A man convicted of being involved in the Canary Wharf bomb that ended the IRA ceasefire in 1996 is found innocent of murder on a technicality. A disreputable newspaper published details that were not put before the court, one of the jury still considering the verdict read it, and the case collapsed. The paper concerned is expected to be slapped on the wrist; the bomber could be freed in two years under recently-enacted terrorist release legislation.
Johnathan Duff, an announcer for HTV Wales, was presenting last night's late news when a fly entered his smiling face. Unbowed to the end, he reached for a glass of water and swallowed it whole, and compared it favourably to the fare at the HTV canteen.
Andre Agassi is the day's big casualty at Wimbledon. He loses in four sets to youngster Tommy Haas. Carlos Moya loses in four to Hitchem Arazi, while Marc Rosset falls to Chris Wilkinson. Byron Black, Jonsa Bjorkman, Richard Krajicek and Todd Martin are on the winners' list.
In the ladies, there are easy wins for Martina Hingis, Sabrina Williams, Jana Novotna, Conchita Martinex, Dominique Van Roost and Yayuk Basuki. Lori McNeil puts Jennifer Capriati out in three sets.
Draws in group E send the Netherlands and Mexico through. They draw 2-2, a result that's fine for both as the Belgians surrender an early lead to draw 1-1 with South Korea.
Germany beat Iran 2-0, and Yugoslavia hold on to an early 1-0 lead to beat the USA. Both winners go through.
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Wednesday, 24 June - Cabot 501
Nato rules out independence for Kosovo, telling the ethnic Albanian leadership to resume talks with the Yugoslav Government.
A pair of five penalties: France 2 Denmark 1 (1 each); South Africa 2 Saudi Arabia 2 (both Saudi's were from the spot and SAfrica's last-gasp leveller). France and Denmark go through.
Paraguay shock everyone by scoring against Nigeria and going on to win 2-1. That takes Nigeria and Paraguay through, in spite of Spain's 6-1 demolition job of Bulgaria.
Straight sets wins for Seles and Graf; Sanchez-Vicario cedes a set. Jenifer Capriati wins in three; also progressing: Cara Black, Sam Smith, Lori McNeil, Po, and Basuki.
Marcello Rios loses to Daniel Vacek, Marc Rosset eliminates Cedric Pioline 13-11 in the 5th set, Greg Rusedski retires from his first round match. Maris Safin loses in four to Medvedev. Krajick, Ivanisevic, Henman, Korda progress, as do Mark Woodforde, Jonas Bjorkman, Moya and Sampras.
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Tuesday, 23 June
The Commons votes to reduce the age of consent for male homosexuals to 16, in line with heterosexual counterparts. Ottawa opens the door to pension benefits for same-sex couples, by deciding not to appeal an Ontario court ruling that treats same-sex couples like people in heterosexual relationships. A key part of the Ontario decision is its interpretation of the federal Income Tax Act's definition of spouse to including same-sex partners.
A man hijacks an Iberian Airlines jetliner with more than 130 people on board, but surrenders in Valencia, Spain. All passengers are released unharmed. Initial reports said three hijackers diverted the plane to Valencia on a domestic flight from Seville to Barcelona; later it was determined only one man was responsible. The hijacker is a mentally disturbed Spaniard who has a criminal record, according to Spanish television.
Italy and Chile go through in the World Cup; Italy beat Austria 2-1 in a dour match; Cameroon draw 1-1 with Chile, but are denied a winner for winning the ball cleanly. Chile progress without winning a match.
Norway beat Brazil 2-1 from a dubious penalty to finish second behind the defending champs. Morocco beat Scotland 3-0 in the other game.
Rain does its usual thing at Wimbledon, stopping play for all but three hours. Pat Rafter wins in four sets, Magnus Larsson and Todd Woodbridge also progress.
Martina Hingis is run close by Lisa Raymond, winning 5 and 3. Jana Novotna pushes through 2 & 2, but Natalie Tauziat is taken to three by Inoue. Seeds Venus Williams, Sandrine Testud also make their way through.
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Monday, 22 June
Conservative Party candidate Andres Pastrana defeats Horacio Serpa to win the presidency of Colombia on Sunday. Pastrana, in his second straight bid for Colombia's highest office, had 50.5 percent against 46.4 percent for Serpa of the governing Liberal Party. "I believe that Colombia has really voted for a change," Pastrana said in a television interview when results showed him ahead.
Speaking at length for the first time since returning home from the United States after being convicted of killing an infant in her care, Louise Woodward implies in an interview that the parents were responsible for the death. "If the parents didn't do it, who did?" Woodward told the BBC in an interview this evening. She has maintained her innocence throughout; prosecutors convicted her of shaking 8-month-old Matthew Eappen to death.
In the World Cup, Colombia put Tunisia out with a 1-0 win; England lose 2-1 to a last-minute Romanian winner, and Germany threaten to make Iran's task that much easier by pulling out after an outbreak of violence yesterday. FIFA decline their offer.
Day 1 of Wimbledon sees a defeat for Mary Pierce at the hands of Eliena Tatarkova of the Ukraine. Steffi Graf, Monica Seles, Sabrina Williams, Iva Majoli, Conchita Martinez, Irina Spirlea and Lindsay Davenport all take easy wins.
In the men's event, Yevgeiny Kafelnikov falls in four sets to Mark Phillipousis, and Justin Gimelstob beat Alex Corretja in straight sets. Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi progress easile, as does Filip Dewulf and Petr Korda. Defeats for Ramon Delgado, hero of the French open, and Alex Radulescu, semi-finalist here two years ago. Jason Stoltenberg eliminates last year's French Open winner Gregor Kuertin 10-8 in the final set. British favourite Tim Henman
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Sunday, 21 June
Chicago Cubs' outfielder Sammy Sosa breaks the record for most home runs in June. His 16th came in the sixth inning of the match against Philadelphia at Wrigley Field. The record for June was 15, shared by Babe Ruth (1930), Bob Johnson (1934), Roger Maris
(1961) and Pedro Guerrero (1985). The all-time record is 18, by Rudy York in August 1937.
World Cup: Argentina book their place in the next phase after beating Jamaica 5-0. Yugoslavia and Germany draw 2-2 after the Slavs take a 2-0 lead. And Global Thermonuclear Football ends Iran 2, USA 1. Now, if Iran beat Germany and Yugoslavia get a point against the US...
South Africa win the 2nd Test by 10 wickets. Nasser Hussein makes 105, Alex Stewart 56, and Fraser and Croft put on 31 for the last wicket. England are 263 all out, South Africa 14/0.
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Saturday, 20 June
Finance officials from around the world hold private talks to discuss Asia's economic crisis and initiate strategies to strengthen the region's battered currencies. The Tokyo meeting is one of the broadest since Asia's financial crisis began last year and comes days after intervention by the United States and Japan to stop the yen's recent freefall against the dollar. Participants were not optimistic about the talks' potential outcome before the meetings started.
Dr. Doug Ross won't be back to "ER" after the end of the next series. Actor George Clooney officially announced Friday that he is leaving the character and the show. It was widely expected that he would leave "ER" at the end of his five-year contract. Clooney's publicist says he may still make an occasional guest appearance on the drama.
Croatia 1-0 Japan; Mexico 2-2 Belgium; Netherlands 5-0 South Korea
England are skittled out for 110 as Donald takes 5/32, his 12th five-wicket haul. Following on, they made 105/2 at stumps, with Atherton 42, Hussain 52*. England are 146 runs short of making South Africa bat again, with eight second innings wickets in hand.
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Friday, 19 June
Iran reacts coolly to an offer by US Foreign Secretary Madeleine Albright Albright Albright to pursue a warmer relationship with the Islamic republic. It's the first sign of a thaw after nearly 20 years of frosty relations between the countries. But Iran's state-run radio called the remarks made by Albright in a speech Wednesday night "inadequate", preferring to continue to demand the Clintern's conversion to Islam, pointing out that this will allow Bill four wives.
South Africa seize control of the test. Jonty Rhodes (117) and Hansie Cronje (81) put on 184 for the 5th wicket, as they're all out for 360. England lose early wickets to close on 40/3. England trail by 320 with seven first innings wickets left.
Nigeria book their place in the World Cup's second round, beating Bulgaria 1-0. Spain and Paraguay draw 0-0.
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Thursday, 18 June
Louise Woodward returns home, protesting her innocence, and pointing out that she won't be paid for a forthcoming interview with the BBC. A civil lawsuit's filed in Boston to ensure she won't make any money from her tale of woe; lawsuit's providence ends with the province of Massechussets.
Amnesty International claims the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted 50 years ago, remains all but meaningless for tens of thousands of people worldwide. In its 1997 report, Amnesty documented extrajudicial executions in 55 countries and judicial executions in 40 others. Prisoners of conscience were in jail in at least 87 countries while torture cases were recorded in 117 nations and "disappearances" in 31.
Football is the loser as perverse refereeing of a perfectly innocuous match sends three players off in Denmark 1-1 Saudi Arabia. France beat Saudi Arabia 4-0 with a player from each side dismissed; France will progress, the Saudis go home.
England have the best of a rain-hit Second Test, sending South Africa reeling to 46/4, with Dominic Cork returning 4/18. Kirsten and Cronje settle in to both make 30* by the close. South Africa 135/4.
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Wednesday, 17 June
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic agrees to resume talks with a moderate Kosovo ethnic Albanian leader, and accepts "obligations" to help ease the crisis in Serbia's southern province, according to the Kremlin. Milosevic will meet with Ibrahim Rugova, a political leader of Kosovo's Albanians, but not with the Kosovo Liberation Army, the main militant group fighting to sever the southern Serb province from Yugoslavia.
Citizen Kane, Orson Welles' masterful 1941 story of power and empty glory, is named as the best American feature film of all time. The Top 10 is rounded out by "Casablanca," "The Godfather," "Gone With the Wind", "Lawrence of Arabia", "The Wizard of Oz," "The Graduate," "On the Waterfront," "Schindler's List," and "Singin' in the Rain". Balloting was by the American Film Institute's panel of movie industry leaders.
The Group of Draws hits again. Chile 1-1 Austria as 12 minutes of injury time fails to add any sparkle to the game. Italy trounce a scrappy Cameroon 3-0.
The Detroit Redwings take their second Stanley Cup on the trot, beating Washington 2-0 on the night, 4-0 in the series.
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Tuesday, 16 June
Louise Woodward remains convicted of involuntary manslaughter following the ruling of the Massechussets Supreme Court. The verdict - unusually, by 4-3 majority - allows her to return home, but prohibits any Mass. organization paying for her story.
The United Nations' chief weapons inspector, Richard Butler, says Iraq
is two months away from being free of economic sanctions. At
that time he may be able to certify Baghdad has no more illegal
weapons, allowing the UN Security Council to lift the sanctions that have been imposed since August 1990.
Scotland 1-1 Norway keeps both sides in the hunt for advancement, and means Morocco stay in the race as well. They lose 3-0 to Brazil.
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This page updated Jun 30, 1998